Years pass and they bring about changes; people come and they go, and demographics change in an area. But some things thankfully stay the same and the longevity and success of Marrickville’s delicatessen, LAMIA SUPER DELI, emphasises the suburb’s significant Greek legacy.
What an incredible role delicatessens have played in providing ingredients and products for respective European migrant groups in post WW2 Australia; more importantly, they introduced so many products and foods to mainstream Australia which were ultimately accepted into the Australian diet and cuisine. Walking into LAMIA SUPER DELI and you will see Greek customers stocking up on their Greek delicacies but there are always non Greeks in the delicatessen and watching them ask for Greek products just emphasises how multiculturalism has shaped Australia.
Over the
many years, owners and locations may have changed, but LAMIA SUPER DELI remains
at the heart of Marrickville’s shopping strip. As it has recently passed fifty
years of operation, such is the strength of LAMIA’s reputation that it transcends
time and trends.
LAMIA
delicatessen was initially established by Apostolos and Maria (nee Danas)
Haralambis, with Kostas Goulas and he later married Angela, in 1968; the
initial premises were a lot closer to the Marrickville and Illawarra Roads’
intersection. Apostolos was inspired to open a delicatessen from his
brother-in-law, Dimitris Danas, who was running his own delicatessen on
Illawarra Road. With thousands of Greeks living in the area in the late 1960s
and having a bus stop in front of it, LAMIA was an instant hit with locals. At the time, the shopping
landscape was very different as Marrickville did not have a supermarket yet;
so, LAMIA was like a mini supermarket itself, selling everything from washing
powder to olives and cheeses.
After Kosta
and Angela left the partnership, the Haralambis family continued this
successful delicatessen until 1995 when their employee, Harry Cotsinis, took
the opportunity to buy the business and he has been running LAMIA SUPER DELI
ever since. With the redevelopment of the building, Harry moved the business a
little further down Marrickville where another delicatessen used to operate-
run by the Parmakellis family.
What has
ensured LAMIA’s longevity as a successful business is Harry and his partner
Christine’s adaptability to market changes. With so many professionals moving
into the area and the subsequent demand for sandwiches and rolls, a sandwich
bar was introduced and hot food- such as home-made moussaka and lasagne- was
introduced too.
LAMIA’s customers love the shop is that it is like walking into a shop in Greece. The aural waft of Greek music floats throughout the shop; there are Greek products throughout the shop; and Harry and Christine- with staff like Stella- have that welcoming Greek ‘filoxenia’ that embraces everyone. What also reassures customers is the abundance of products on offer; whether it is shelves or the fridges, they are filled with such a variety!
Harry
reiterates how Australian attitudes towards Greek food has changed over the
years as he points out so many of his customers are non Greeks, and these
customers are very open minded and willing to try new foods.
Although Harry believes Christine, with her zest and energy, is the heartbeat of LAMIA SUPER DELI, the shop itself remains the heart of Marrickville’s bustling shopping strip.
Amazon announced today that they will be debuting their first scripted Australian Amazon Original series – Back to the Rafters.
The show will pick up six years after it left off, and will feature the original principal cast members including Rebecca Gibney (Julie Rafter), Erik Thomson (Dave Rafter), Jessica Marais (Rachel Rafter), Hugh Sheridan (Ben Rafter), Angus McLaren (Nathan Rafter), Michael Caton (Ted Taylor) and Greek-Australian, George Houvardas (Nick “Carbo” Karandonis).
Houvardas played the “Greek boy-next-door” in the popular series, which launched his popularity on Australian television. Since then he has taken up new roles, including a leading role in the ABC’s hit new series ‘Frayed’.
The Vice President of International Originals at Amazon Studios, James Farrell, expressed his excitement for the return of the Rafters on Amazon.
“Packed to the Rafters is among the most beloved Australian series and this revival will allow us to give our customers the locally relevant entertainment they want. We’re thrilled to be working with Seven Studios to bring back the Rafter family for Prime members in Australia and around the world,” said Farrell.
“The world has changed so much in that time, and it is a writing dream to be able to explore how the Rafters have changed with it, while at the same time reconnecting with the life affirming combination of humour and heart that characterised the original series. In an increasingly dark world, it is wonderful to use the Rafters again to spread light.”
The series will launch on Prime Video in Australia and around the world in more than 200 countries and territories, with filming scheduled to begin in 2020 with Seven Studios.
The Holy Monastery of Panagia Pantanassa in Mangrove Creek NSW is in the direct line of an “unstoppable” bushfire.
Yesterday, it was reported that the fire was at the door step of the Holy monastery, and that all necessary measures have been put in place to save the monastery, but authorities fear the fires may be uncontainable.
The nearby St Dionysios Hall was set up as a base for emergency assistance and a ground for volunteers.
The monastery came under the Archdiocese of Australia when the late Archbishop Stylianos blessed it in 1976.
It is the first Greek Orthodox monastery that has adapted ancient Byzantine architecture and ancient materials, with contemporary designs in an Australian context.
The Holy Monastery of Panagia Pantanassa is a monastery for men located on the Central Coast of NSW, on Mangrove Mountain, which is 90 minutes north of Sydney.
Upon stepping foot in Australia, information was released that former Deputy Foreign Minister of Greece, Antonis Diamataris resigned from his position.
While Diamataris had a 9-day tour planned across Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, to address the Greek-Ausralian diaspora, it has now been confirmed that his programmes have been cancelled.
The Consulate General of Sydney confirmed that Diamataris’ programme for Sydney had been cancelled. It is understood that the rest of his meetings around Australia have also been cancelled, and his visit to Australia has become a personal visit.
His resignation was accepted by Greece’s Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, and came after a scandal regarding Diamataris’ CV, where he listed he had a degree from Columbia University. It was recently discovered this was not true and he did not complete a degree at the prestigious university. Furthermore, it was discovered that he had also declared a fake year of birth (1959, instead of 1950), and the Ministry has now removed his studies at Queen’s College from his government CV.
“In the past few days, I have received personal attacks which are disorienting and aim to undermine the government and the prime minister, which I love and respect, as well as to undermine my work. For this reason, I submitted to Kyriakos Mitsotakis, with great pain, my resignation,” he said in a statement.
Greece’s Deputy Foreign Minister Antonis Diamataris has resigned a day before commencing his tour around Australia.
In his statement of resignation, which was accepted by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Mr Diamataris states:
“In the past few days, I have received personal attacks which are disorienting and aim to undermine the government and the prime minister, which I love and respect, as well as to undermine my work. For this reason, I submitted to Kyriakos Mitsotakis, with great pain, my resignation.”
His resignation came after his involvement in a scandal over the past few days, regarding false information on his CV. Mr Diamataris marketed that he had graduated from Columbia University, where he was enrolled but had not graduated.
The previous political party, SYRIZA, has fired repeatedly on Diamataris in recent days, stating he had no masters degree, no diploma, and “it remains unknown if he had a high school diploma”.
Diamataris’ visit to Australia
Diamataris is due to land tonight, Thursday night, in Sydney and starts his 9 day tour around Australia.
It was confirmed he would be visiting Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.
The ex-minister was set to meet with key figures in the Greek-Australian diaspora before his departure on December 13th.
It has now been confirmed that his diplomatic programme across Australia has been cancelled and his trip has now been interpreted as a personal visit.
A 32-year-old Greek Cypriot woman who has been living in northern Cyprus for several years, has been put in detention in the north away after reportedly trying to end her life.
The woman reportedly tried to jump off the fourth floor of a building in Kyrenia in northern Cyprus, and was arrested after she stopped herself from doing so. She was then taken to court which ordered her to three days of detention.
She was allegedly trying to end her life after her boyfriend left her.
After her arrest, it emerged that she has been living illegally in the north since 2015. The woman reportedly told court that her ex-husband was abusing her and her son and for that reason she took him and escaped to the north. The boy is reportedly now seven years old.
She said she could not leave the north because of a pending court case against her for the abduction of a minor, when she tried to cross to the south with her son.
Her son was taken away from her and she is now not allowed to see him. She claims her ex-husband was making all arrangements to take the boy with him to Turkey.
The woman also said she was in a dire financial situation and had sought assistance from authorities on both sides without any response.
She said her family and her brother who is an archimandrite, cut her off after her decision to marry a Turk.
Greece will enhance bilateral cooperation with China in many sectors, including shipping, with Piraeus Port a pillar and example under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, Greek Minister of Shipping and Island Policy Yiannis Plakiotakis has said.
Greece considers China a friend and strategic partner, and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Greece in November shows that both sides value cooperation in Piraeus Port and other fields, the minister told Xinhua in an interview.
“The presence of President Xi was of utmost importance in terms of our strategic relations, (and) in terms of our strategic cooperation,” Plakiotakis said.
“There is great room for cooperation, but the most strategic part of our cooperation of course is Piraeus Port,” he said.
“The Port of Piraeus has always been the strategic pillar of our cooperation and both Greece and China are committed to transforming Piraeus Port into one of the three top main container ports in whole of Europe.”
The remains of six Greek soldiers killed in Cyprus during the 1974 Turkish invasion will be handed over to their families on Thursday during a ceremony in Nicosia to be taken back home after 45 years.
Two of the soldiers had been missing since then while the other four had been buried in Lakatamia.
The remains of lieutenant Georgios Papalambrides, posthumously promoted to lieutenant general, were found in the Alonagra area of Pentadaktylos as part of the work of the committee on missing persons.
As were the remains of sergeant Pavlos Poulides, which were found in Kioneli. Poulides was later promoted to warrant officer.
Warrant officer Constantinos Kourlios, posthumously promoted to colonel, had been buried in a military cemetery in Lakatamia along with private Vasilios Panayiotou. He was later promoted to warrant officer.
The other two, warrant officers Constantinos Kateros and Constantinos Elia, had been part of a commando unit airlifted to Cyprus in July 1974 to reinforce the National Guard. They were killed after their plane was shot down by friendly fire over the Nicosia airport.
“It is certainly a moving moment. We express our admiration for the relatives for the patience and strength they showed all these years and hope to ease their pain with this act,” presidential commissioner Photis Photiou said.
Family members will arrive from Greece on Wednesday and they will be briefed by the authorities.
The remains will be flown to Greece in a Greek air force C-130 transport plane.
Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, held a 90-minute meeting where the parallel countries addressed all their mutual tensions ranging from exclusive economic zones (EEZ), bilateral relations, confidence-building measures and the migrant crisis that has heavily affected both countries.
Earlier on Wednesday, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said he discussed with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “all the issues” that have recently increased tensions between the two countries during a meeting on the sidelines of NATO’s 70th birthday gathering in London, according to Ekathimerini.
“I presented all the issues arising from the latest Turkish actions. The disagreements from both sides were noted. The two sides, however, agreed to continue discussions on the confidence-building measures of the ministry of defence,” he told journalists after the meeting.
“I would like to assure the Greek people that difficulties in our relationship with Turkey have always existed, still exist, and will exist. But I believe that as long as both sides show goodwill, these difficulties can be overcome,” Mitsotakis said.
EEZ
According to sources quoted by the Athens-Macedonia News Agency (AMNA), the Greek premier clarified that the Turkey-Libya memorandum of understanding on maritime zones in the East Mediterranean is legally invalid and complicates things in a volatile region.
Ankara agreement
The EU, Russia, and the US all denounced Ankara’s agreement as a destabilising factor for the entire region, according to To Vima.
It should be noted that for decades Athens rejected a no-holds barred bilateral dialogue on Turkish claims, which was always a top objective for Ankara, and which Athens still believes Turkey could provoke with a military incident.
The Ankara agreement addresses the relations between Turkey and the European Union.
Migration crisis
The meeting at NATO was not as much a negotiation as it was confirmation of the positions of the two sides on certain issues.
Mitsotakis took the opportunity to underline that Turkey had violated the agreements of the EU-Turkey statement, which was an agreement made between the EU and Turkey in 2016 which aimed to limit the number of migrants entering Turkey.
After the meeting Mitsotakis said he had an “open discussion” with Erdogan and before the meeting he had said he would attend the talks “with open cards”.
Confidence-building measures
One agreement the two sides did come to was to continue talks on increasing confidence-building measures, which are actions and agreements from both sides to reduce the fear of military or physical attacks between two politically tense countries.
In a peculiar incident, the state-run Athens News Agency reported – citing defence ministry sources – that the government has decided to freeze the talks on CBMs in response to Turkish aggressiveness and its stance on the migration issue and that the withdrawal would be implemented by Defence Minister Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos.
Hours later the PM’s office denied there was such a decision – even though state-run media reported it – and that it was a leak from the defence ministry, according to To Vima.
It is unclear what had transpired in the interim or if there was any intervention.
“I placed on the table all the issues arising from Turkey’s latest actions. The differences on both sides were registered. However, the two sides agreed to continue talks on CBMs being carried out by the defence ministry,” Mitsotakis said.
Bank of Sydney CEO, Mr Miltos Michaelas, spoke exclusively to The Greek Herald about:
Moving for the job,
Transforming an organisation,
Maintaining a family culture in large organisations,
The future of Australian youth and young Greek-Australians
“You always have to remember that these are people… it’s about people.”
Moving for the job
Michaelas first came to Australia in 2001, which he
identified as a major career opportunity.
“I was 32 years old. But I had ties here, as a family. All
of my mother’s brothers are here. I grew up writing my mother’s letters to her
brothers. The family was very attached to Australia so when I was offered the
opportunity to come to Australia, I took the job.”
He points out that from a professional point of view, it was
a very good proposition and an opportunity to see relatives in Australia, along
with the excitement of the adventure.
In 2001, he was asked to set up the Laiki Bank in Australia where he completed his first stint in Australia before returning back to Cyprus..
10 years later, Michaelas returned to Australia following
the major banking crisis in 2013 in Cyprus, where numerous banks were called to
dismiss a large number of employees and he was offered the opportunity to
return to Australia.
He was put forward to come to Australia and build something, which excited him and he took on the challenge. “It was an opportunity to take on something I left behind and move on to a much deeper market. To take the Bank of Sydney from where it was and make it something much bigger, a bank that had the staff, the name, the investors, was a big challenge for me. All that needed to change was the way it was steered. I thought it was an opportunity to do something that Greeks could be proud of.”
Transforming an organisation
Miltos notes that his biggest challenge was responding to
the fast pace changes in society, and adapting new knowledge to effectively
achieve these responses.
“You need a plan, a goal…and some time to adjust to the
world. We needed 3 years to make the transition,” says Miltos.
One of the steps in his plan and adjustments was “marrying”
the people that already existed in the business, with new employees in a
cohesive manner. Miltos says he is extremely pleased with how Bank of Sydney
has adapted to the “new world” and “achieved this adjustment and our goals,
because they have all been done smoothly without distractions.”
Ultimately, one of Miltos’ more personal and profound
“goals” was devising a plan that would make Bank of Sydney “a bank that Greeks
would be proud of”.
He believes Bank of Sydney has done this by keeping what the
bank was and slowly entering the wider market, so the community could
understand the market was “not purely Greeks”.
Though, serving the Greek community is something Mr Michaelas
has always held close to his heart.
“That is why the aim remains to build a name on the national
market today, and our success to be a factor of pride for all generations of
Greeks in Australia. What we know from community banking can also be
incorporated into our proposal for national banking.”
“Our goal was to inspire the new generation, to give us the opportunity to work together. Because if this generation doesn’t see us as something comparable to other banks, as something that gives them pride, they won’t trust us.”
Bank of Sydney building.
Maintaining a family culture in large organisations
Miltos also notes a key part of the success of the Bank of
Sydney due to the work of his employees and the family dynamic of the bank.
“When you work as a family, you try to help even your
weakest children. You don’t give up…We also needed new skills, and we provided
them with new hires,” explains Miltos.
He believes the Bank of Sydney was able to keep this “family
culture”, even in the large corporation that it is, by keeping staff who have
been around since the beginning, and integrating new staff who have brought the
new skills required to respond to the new era.
Mr Michaelas believes banking is more than finance, which is
why he was able to make the decision to uproot his whole life for it, as he sees
it as an important avenue to help others.
“Someone has an idea, to build their own home, to run a
business, and he tells the idea to the bank. He [the banker] listens to it, he
sees the idea being implemented and helps with the result. The right bank
enjoys the success of its customers and regrets when a customer fails,” says
Miltos.
“We know all of our customers and rejoice when they succeed,
and we grieve when they fail.”
Miltos notes his biggest risk, to this day, in the course of
his career, concerned his family.
“When someone makes a business choice, the family is tied to
it and the risks are then bigger…we all try to do the best for the family, but
we may not always succeed. In the end it went well, but we also had difficult
times. The children had to undergo an adaptation process twice. Today, they
have overcome it, they have friends, their lives run smoothly. But there were
also difficult times,” he admits.
When asked to offer some advice to a family contemplating
going through a similar transition process, he stresses that they need very
good preparation, especially with regard to children.
“If there is a way, it would be good to do it slowly,” says
Miltos. He believes if it is possible for families to visit the place they are
moving to beforehand, or have more time to settle in, this would greatly help
with the transition process.
He admits he made this mistake with his family the first time they moved to Australia. He says due to the distance, the family was not entirely prepared for the move, and the day after they landed they launched straight into their new daily routine, which was a big shock for the family. Though, he notes it was not as difficult a move as it would have been for the first generation of immigrants who came to Australia to live. He also thinks that age plays a role, as it is easier for children to adjust when they are younger rather than older.
The future of Australia and young Greek-Australians
Miltos views the new generation of Australians and
Greek-Australians in an extremely positive light. He believes the emerging
generation is a product of the migrant motivation for success.
“In the past the first generation faced difficulties. They
came to a difficult country, they did not know the language and they were trying
to survive. The younger generations, however, are not faced with as many
difficulties, but they have the opportunity to learn from their parents,” says
Miltos.
Miltos heavily engages with young Australians, through the
Bank of Sydney apprenticeship program and beyond, and has a direct
understanding of their work ethic, initiative and motivation to succeed.
When asked specifically about Greek-Australians, Miltos
believes the only difference between other Australians their age is that they
have the opportunity to learn and understand the difficulties the previous
generations of Greek migrants went through, and how they overcame them. Miltos
views this as a differentiating source of inspiration for young
Greek-Australians. He sees this work ethic stems from the question they asked
themselves; “my parents did it in such difficult conditions, why not me?”
When asked what he would like people to remember him for, his
answer is laconic and simple:
“I want to be remembered as a good kid. That’s enough for
me. A good kid.”
